Who was John Flynn and why is he important?
Flynn's story and legacy is the stuff of legends. wandering off into the desert on the back of a camel for months at a time to offer solace to lost souls in need of spiritual communion and basic outside human contact.
Flynn knew first hand the trials and tribulations of life on the land in remote communities throughout Australia having been born in the small Victorian gold fields town of Moliagul.
John Flynn was an Australian Presbyterian minister and the founder of the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS). Born on November 25, 1880, in Moliagul, Victoria, Australia, Flynn dedicated his life to improving healthcare accessibility in remote areas of Australia. His vision and determination led to the establishment of the RFDS, which has saved countless lives and continues to provide vital medical services to this day.
This dilapidated shack sits on the property where Flynn was born.
The Legacy of John Flynn and the RFDS
John Flynn's legacy lives on through the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The RFDS continues to provide essential medical care to those living in remote and isolated regions of Australia. With a fleet of aircraft and a team of dedicated medical professionals, the RFDS ensures that people in need receive timely and life-saving healthcare services.
The Moliagul school was built in 1871 with Thomas Flynn as principal. His son John Flynn went on the University High School and became a minister in the Presbyterian Church. Sent to outback missions, Flynn opened a string of nursing hostels serving all the isolated bush; aboriginal families alongside whites. In 1928 he set up the Flying Doctor Service. The boy who left Moliagul as a three year old had used radio and planes to bring medicine to the most remote corners of the continent.
The uassuming tiny town of Moliagul truly is where legends are born as not only was it John Flnn's Birthplace but it was also where the largest gold nugget ever found, "The Welcome Stanger" was dicovered in 1854
